The duties test is the part of federal overtime law that looks at what an employee actually does to decide whether they can be exempt from overtime. A salary and a title are not enough on their own.
| Exemption | Primary duty | Other duties requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Executive | Managing the business or a department | Directs 2 or more employees; hire and fire input given particular weight |
| Administrative | Office work tied to management or business operations | Discretion and independent judgment on matters of significance |
| Learned professional | Work requiring advanced knowledge | Knowledge from prolonged specialized instruction |
| Creative professional | Invention, imagination, originality or talent | In a recognized artistic or creative field |
All of these also need the salary tests. Failing any one test makes the employee non-exempt, with overtime due for hours over 40 in a workweek.
EZTime labor rule alerts flag overtime and missed rest periods before payroll.
A retail chain pays its assistant store managers a salary of $900 a week and treats them as exempt. The salary passes the federal level. The title says manager.
An audit looks at what one assistant manager actually does. On most shifts she runs a register and stocks shelves alongside the staff. She does not direct anyone’s work regularly; the store manager does. She has never been asked for input on hiring or firing.
Her primary duty is not management, so she fails the executive duties test, and the salary does not save the classification. The chain reclassifies the role as non-exempt, tracks her hours, and pays overtime for hours over 40. For assistant managers at other stores who do direct staff and whose hiring recommendations are followed, the classification stays, with the evidence written down.
Roles drift. An assistant manager hired to run a shift can end up working the register most of the day after a staffing cut, and the classification that was right a year ago may be wrong now. A yearly review catches that before a claim does.
A construction firm treats its office coordinator as exempt under the administrative exemption. Her day is spent entering timesheets, ordering supplies from approved vendors, answering phones and scheduling meetings.
The work is office work, but it follows set procedures and does not involve discretion and independent judgment on matters of significance. She fails the administrative duties test, so the firm reclassifies her as non-exempt, keeps her salary as salaried non-exempt pay and tracks her hours for overtime.
A set of requirements about the employee’s primary duty and responsibilities that differs for executive, administrative and professional exemptions.
No. The employee must also pass the salary basis test and the duties test for a specific exemption.
Primary duty of management, customarily and regularly directing two or more other employees, and hiring or firing authority or recommendations given particular weight.
They are non-exempt and must be paid overtime for hours over 40 in a workweek, even if they are paid a salary.
No. It looks at the work the employee actually does. A manager title or job description does not decide the exemption.
There is no fixed percentage, but employees who spend more than half their time on exempt work generally meet the primary duty requirement. Time is one factor among several.
Digital HR forms, e-signatures and a digital employee file with expiry reminders, plus announcements by location, department or role.